MC Writing Center

The Maryville College Writing Center supports students’ development of communication skills through individual tutorials in all aspects of writing and speech preparation. The mission of the Writing Center is, simply stated, to help students strengthen their communication abilities.

What to expect

The length of consultation sessions varies from five to 30 minutes, depending on the assignment being discussed.

Consultants can provide help with all stages of the writing or speech preparation process.

Consultants will respond as readers, not error analysts.

They will suggest areas that need to be improved and point out patterns of errors, but not every error.

Consultants will make suggestions for improvement of your assignment, but you will have to do the work.

If no one is waiting, you can see a consultant immediately. If a consultant is currently working with another student, please sign up for an appointment later that evening.

Students arriving after 9:00 p.m. will be asked to schedule an appointment for the next available session.

Tips for success with a consultant

Bring all materials related to your project: the assignment sheet, your textbook and any drafts of your essay or speech that have instructor comments.

Be as concrete as you can in describing your particular area of concern. If you know you have difficulty with writing a thesis statement, organization, or use of language, do not state that you have trouble with "everything."

Most importantly, bring questions and an open mind, recognizing that developing excellent writing and public speaking skills is a process.

Hours of operation and location

The Writing Center is located within the main floor of the Thaw Library. Please see the Fall 2014 schedule below: